Wolf 223 Ammo??

With the price of ammo going crazy and SHTF and elections, I am getting ready for major ammo purchase this week. I have never bought foreign ammo but with domestic prices and lack of availabilty I am now considering it. What is the deal with Wolf Russian steel cased 223's. Will it shoot as good as domestic? Do steel cases or shellac spray on cases hurt your gun, ie Ejector, chamber etc. I don't want to be penny wise and pound foolish and have my AR-15's ruined by junk ammo, but if its OK I am willing to try it. Any info is greatly appreciated!

It is not as accurate as most other ammo I have shot in my AR but it will shoot minute of man out to 200 yards or so.

It is a little dirtier. Probably because the steel case does not expand as well as a brass case (the case is really nothing more than a high pressure gasket) and the chamber gets a little dirtier than with brass ammo.

The black box Wolf is polymer coated and hasn't seemed to have any effect on reliability.

The steel case is a little harder than brass so your extractor will probably wear out a little quicker, but who really cares?

According to the Ammo-Oracle it is a little underpowered so it might not be the best self defense ammo but I sure as heck don't want to get shot with it.

M2 Carbine

February 13, 2008, 07:34 PM

Some shooters like it and say they have no problem.

Others, like me, think it's crap and have had nothing but trouble with it.

I'd suggest that you don't do like my friend.
He believed some hype he read about the Wolf .223 and bought 2,000 rounds. He had such trouble with it he gave 1,000 rounds to me and 1,000 rounds to his son-in-law.
The son-in-law had such trouble with the Wolf in his AR he gave the ammo back to his father-in-law.
I tried to give it back but my friend wouldn't accept it.:D

I'd suggest that before you make a "major" purchase of .223 Wolf, you buy 5 or 10 boxes and see how it functions in your guns.

ckay

February 13, 2008, 07:48 PM

I have absolutely no problems with Wolf. I think for what I shoot(100 yards) it serves me well. However, once I burn through the other case I don't think I'll be buying any more.

geojap

February 13, 2008, 07:54 PM

I have heard many people say that it gives their ARs fits. However, I use it in my .223 AKMs and my Sig 556 and it runs flawlessly.

Out of all the Russian ammo, I actually like Silver Bear best. Silver Bear is noticeably cleaner than Wolf or Barnaul. I like Barnaul somewhere in the middle and Wolf last. They all run flawlessly however in my piston-cycled rifles.

TX1911fan

February 13, 2008, 07:54 PM

Anyone who doesn't like their Wolf ammo is welcome to give it to me. I'll even pay shipping to take it off your hands!

dagger dog

February 13, 2008, 08:06 PM

ditto no problems with the .223 steel cased , but i shoot it out of my Mini-14,
i believe it would digest about any thing carrots, cabbage, apples, but the accuracy is mediocre with the Wolf, the others mentioned is very poor.

i don't , and won't shoot it out of my .223 bolt gun. no reason other than i don't want to chance ruining the chamber if the necks are to thick, might score the chamber.
i think it's a good buy for blasting ammo and for taking your non shooting friends out to the range and impressing them with some barrel melting 30 rnd.
magazine emptying rapid firing .

any shooters with machine guns tried this stuff?

dagger dog

Joe the Redneck

February 13, 2008, 08:20 PM

Smart mouth comment about how this is the millionth time this question has been asked deleted by Joe the Redneck :)

Janos Dracwlya

February 13, 2008, 08:30 PM

I've used it and other than it being a little bit dirtier, I've never had a single problem. I've used 9mm P, 9mm Makarov, 7.62x39, and .223. In fact, I have nearly 500 rounds through my AR-15 with no cleaning and no problems; it is the only ammunition I have ever fed my AR.

briansmithwins

February 13, 2008, 08:59 PM

Wolf isn't accurate, is dirty, and weak. If a AR will work with Wolf, it will function with ANY ammo.

I've shot 1000s or rounds of it thru 2 ARs and my AK. No problems for me. BSW

nosliw

February 13, 2008, 09:05 PM

people who bad mouth the stuff either don't plink often or have too much money ;)

but really, the stuff is garbage for anything but plinking. and 95% of the people who own AR's use them to plink.

Wolf is lousy. If you want to shoot cheaper steel cased ammo, look at bear or Barnaul.

jpwilly

February 14, 2008, 01:30 AM

Wolf is great plinking / practice ammo! Just don't get the chamber really really hot because you will probably get a stuck case!

EHCRain10

February 14, 2008, 02:00 AM

ive had no problems running it through my ar
up to 90 rounds as fast as i can pull the trigger without any stuck cases
guess that means i need to buy more mags eh?

possum

February 14, 2008, 03:21 AM

i have used alot of wolf in my ar and i have had no issues, i do prefer the polycoated stuff better than the laquer, but they both work.

stubbicatt

February 14, 2008, 05:28 AM

For about 18 cents apiece you can load your own, brass cased, boxer primed, ammunition. And that's if you don't reuse the brass.

Just a thought.

TimboKhan

February 14, 2008, 05:40 AM

Lots of people hate Wolf, lots of people do just fine with it.

Speaking from personal experience, I have been very happy with Wolf across the board, and I don't hesitate to buy it. I like the .45 so well that for a long time, it was my preferred defensive ammo. I have since switched to hydra-shoks for mostly obvious reasons, but for regular old ball ammo, it shot like a dream in my Ruger.

wcwhitey

February 14, 2008, 08:40 AM

I second the Barnaul recommendation. Great ammo an cheaper than Wolf. It is also sold under the Bear (Silver, Brown) banner. I have 3 different looking boxes of it but it is the same ammo.

04JRB

February 14, 2008, 09:05 AM

Before reloading my own I used the Wolf steel case. My experience was less than staisfactory.

It wasnt very accurate at all. 4" groups with some lots and 1" groups with others at 100yds.

It was very dirty, took much longer to clean the rifle later. Not to mention my fingers would be stained silver from the ammo.

I still have several hundred rounds of it in 55gr FMJ, but I load my own now and have a wonderful load worked up (1/2" at 100yds) for it so I dont see shooting it anytime soon. After initial cost of the equipment, Im making premium rounds for less than the price of wolf.

Clint C

February 14, 2008, 09:20 AM

Very dirty, be prepared to clean your rifle. I would spend .10 cents more a round and get good quality brass ammunition.

H2O MAN

February 14, 2008, 09:23 AM

Not bad when used for plinking and to break in and loosen up your AR.

MechAg94

February 14, 2008, 10:48 AM

Same as others. It works for fine in my Armalite, but it is dirty and a little underpowered.

I've got a Saiga .223 that shoots it fine also so I can shoot it even if I did decide my AR didn't like it. :)

RifleGuy

February 14, 2008, 11:06 AM

I have fired in excess of 10,000 rounds of Wolf ammo through an AR-15 platform, a IMI Baby Eagle, and a Glock 17; none have experienced any problems.
The AR a match-grade set-up, and did require frequent cleaning with the laquered ammo ( every 300-350 rounds), but runs fine with the polymer coating.

The guy I do most of my shooting with has fired over 50,000 rounds of Wolf through his assortment of guns, and he has had no problems; Wolf is the only ammo he will buy.

Your mileage may vary though!

DoubleTapDrew

February 14, 2008, 12:52 PM

It's not as accurate as good ammo and it stinks, but it's cheap and my AR runs fine with it. It may wear your extractor a little faster but you can buy several of those for the money you save on your first case. Buy a couple boxes first. I've never used the lacquer stuff in an AR, just the poly. I've heard shooting lacquer followed by brass has resulted in stuck cases.

It wouldn't be my first choice for defensive ammo (but better than a handgun still). It has a thick jacket on the bullets so they don't fragment like M193/855 would.